‘Volunteering’: a word we are all very accustomed to, particularly whilst at University. But whatever form it may take, be it charity work, helping launch a scheme, raising awareness or just giving a little bit of your time, volunteering can be hugely beneficial to yourself and others. Here at Her Campus Exeter, we are always looking out for new ways to help out in the community, and joining CA seems to be a great place to start.
Community Action is the student volunteering organisation; anyone can get involved, the volunteering is totally free and the projects are very flexible, allowing you to fit in all your extra-curricular and studies (phew!) This year, CA has eight individual projects that run on a weekly basis including opportunities to work with the elderly, children or local teenagers.
The SEA project allows volunteers to act as mentors to sixth form students at a local college. Essentially, you are a person to talk to, and can advise on workload, personal statements or discuss future plans. Speaking to real life uni students is a real benefit to sixth formers as they take your opinions seriously, meaning you could have a big impact on their future decisions.
SAM (Students Achieving More) is a scheme working with young children aged 5-8. There are lots of activities including arts and crafts, puppet making and clay model making. This is great fun for the children, but also the volunteers, hey who doesn’t want to do arts and crafts all day long?!
The STEP project works with the over 60s in Exeter, providing socialising opportunities through lots of activities, from bingo to Wii games; you may require more energy than you think!
As well as this CA provides the opportunity for volunteers to get involved outside the weekly projects and more widely within the local community. Environmental projects, and painting hostels for the homeless are amongst the activities on offer and make a huge difference to the community; CA is a great help to the Devon region. This year, Community Action is also releasing new degree related volunteering projects, where we students can gain experience in a career related project.
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So why volunteer? Well firstly it’s hugely flexible. CA is a University society, and understands the timetabling of students; therefore there are plenty of opportunities for you to fit in when you can, and ample schemes to get involved in.
Also, it really makes a difference. For those receiving help, just a few hours of your time does a huge amount of good. Many of those involved really look forward to spending time with the students and it does wonders for their well-being and self-esteem. Through this, it makes you feel good for helping others and knowing you are making a difference.
It also looks great on the CV. With all of us getting increasingly stressed about the state of our CVs, volunteering with such a worthwhile organisation looks fantastic and really makes you stand out from the crowd. Through being involved in volunteering, you also learn new skills such as organisation, childcare and communication. These are all transferrable skills to many different career paths meaning volunteering could help prepare you for the world of work which is rapidly approaching!
You can also meet new people. Not only will you be meeting those you are helping, but other volunteers and students at Exeter. It’s a brilliant way of meeting lots of different people across year groups.
With so many opportunities to help the community and yourself- getting involved certainly seems like a natural step. CA have lots going on during fresher’s week, including their ‘Willing to be Wild’ pub crawl on the Tuesday in association with RAG. Tickets will give you entry to Timepiece, drinks deals and a pub crawl T-Shirt, all elements to guarantee a good night. As well as this, day activities include a bouncy castle, meet and greet sessions, photo socials and so many more!
Volunteering is definitely something to become part of this year, whether you are just starting or have graced the campus for several years now. CA is of course not the only area to get involved in. RAG does a huge amount for the community including Children in Need and Comic Relief projects. You can also volunteer by being in a society committee, assisting with an academic project or giving a few hours of your time to an organisation. Volunteering is something which has so many benefits; HCX certainly gives it the stamp of approval.
Image Credits:
thisiscornwall.co.uk, flickr.com, exetercommunityaction.wordpress.com